It's A Wonderful Life
by DenLilleViking
Summary: Buffy Summers wakes up one day to find the world is not as she left it the night before. Season 3 - AU Written by @MsStakesALot
1. Chapter 1

**Buffy The Vampire Slayer - It's A Wonderful Life**

 **Season 3 - AU**

-1-

"Buffy, you're bleeding!"

Willow Rosenberg exclaimed as she crept out from behind a broken headstone. The petite redhead hurried towards her best friend, carefully avoiding the Glarghk Guhl Kashmas'nik demon that lay dead on the ground.

"It's just a graze. Barely punctured my skin," Buffy replied, craning her neck to get a good look at the circular mark on her upper arm where the demon's stinger had, well, stung. It looked bad, but didn't hurt much. In all honesty, Buffy was more concerned about the tear the demon had made in her brand new leather jacket. Why did she even bother dressing fashionably? It was a constant waste of money. The vamps and demons of Sunnydale definitely weren't getting any gentler.

"You sure you're okay?" Willow asked, her fair eyebrows knitting together in a worried frown.

"Physically, yes. But the fact I now have to go home to cram for a history test I'm definitely going to fail, kind of makes me wish the fight had lasted longer," Buffy teased, sheathing her bloodied dagger in her boot. The prospect of studying her least favorite subject, when all she really wanted to do was take a bath and go to bed, made her victory over tonight's demon fade.

"You're too hard on yourself," Willow said, linking her arm with Buffy's as the two girls navigated their way out of the dark graveyard. "I'm sure you'll do fine."

Buffy knew Willow was just trying to make her feel better, and that to pass tomorrow's test would require nothing less than a miracle, but she appreciated it nonetheless. Willow would of course receive top marks, as she always did. She was the brightest student at Sunnydale High, after all. Though Buffy was proud of her best friend's accomplishments, she couldn't help but wonder sometimes, if Willow had the same responsibilities she did, would she still be a star pupil? Or perhaps then, without her slaying duties, Buffy would be the one to excel academically.

She had been one of the best in her class once, back at Hemley High, pre-calling. Her parents had been so proud. Now, Buffy's mom appeared reluctant to even ask how she was doing in school, because she knew how far down the academic ladder her daughter had dropped.

If she had only had more time. More time to study, to attend school, to be with her friends in a setting that didn't involve blood and murder... But it was pointless to have such dreams. Buffy would never be at peace. Her days and nights would be occupied by the evils of the world until the day she died.

By the time Buffy got home, the house was already dark. Her mother had gone to bed, though she was probably still awake. Waiting and listening for the moment she knew Buffy had returned safely. Still, Buffy tiptoed silently up the stairs and into her room. She turned on the light and shrugged off her jacket, wincing as she caught sight of herself in the mirror. Her shoulder blades had assumed a dark shade of purple, probably some internal bleeding from the moment the demon had flung her into a nearby mausoleum. Guess sleeveless shirts were no longer an option for the following days.

The people at school seemed to have become used to Buffy appearing with bruises and cuts, arms in slings and stitches galore. They hardly even questioned it anymore. Some had even put out the rumor she was the leader of an underground fight club. Buffy didn't mind. It was better they assumed such silly things than to find out the actual truth.

With her history-test fresh in mind, Buffy took a seat on the edge of her bed and emptied her school bag onto the mattress. Her body delighted over the soft surface beneath her, such a stark contrast to the beating she had taken at the graveyard. Her eyes became heavy, and after a few moments she succumbed to the urge to lay down. Just for a few minutes. Just long enough to re-energize for the upcoming study session. Minutes passed, and Buffy slept.

 **The** following morning, Buffy woke with a start as her alarm clocked went off. She sat up abruptly, dazed and disorientated, squinting from the harsh sunlight that fell on her face through the window. A few books fell off the bed and onto the floor as she leaned over to shut off the shrill clock. The temptation to ignore the call of the day and fall back into the soft pillows was great, but upon suddenly remembering the test that waited for her at school, Buffy shot up like a rocket. Damn! She had fallen asleep without managing so much as a minute of studying. Whatever small hope she had pertained for the outcome of this test, dwindled.

And still, showing up to participate would give her a chance, however minuscule, to get it right. At least more chance than she would have should she stay home. Pushing her sense of dread deep down, Buffy went into auto-mode; showered and washed her hair, dressed, applied makeup and gathered her school things before grabbing breakfast-to-go in the form of a cold poptart.

She got to school just in time, the bell ringing as she located the classroom. Willow and Xander were already there, and they had saved her a spot by the window. Grateful, Buffy hurried over and took a seat. She was about to confess to her best friends that studying had been a no-go and that she was slightly panicked, but at that time Mrs. George, the teacher, entered the room and demanded complete silence. Even though no words had been exchanged, Willow still seemed to have understood the gist of Buffy's frantic expression and she flashed her a comforting smile as if to say: "Don't worry. You got this."

The tests were distributed and soon all that could be heard were the sounds of pencils scratching on paper. Buffy scribbled her name atop the first page. At least she would get that right. Then she braced herself and looked down.

She read the first question twice:

"Unlike the French revolution the American revolution produced?

A. Women's suffrage

B. Short term military rule

C. Strategic alliances

D. A lasting Constitution"

Buffy blinked. She knew this. Somehow after reading the question and the potential answers, memories resurfaced within Buffy's mind, memories of classes and lectures that must have been so deeply buried she could not even remember attending them. After a moment's hesitation, she circled the last answer. D, and moved on to the next.

To her utmost surprise, a lot of the following questions made sense as well. Buffy circled what she believed to be the correct answer, sometimes she was even quite certain, and well before the time limit was out, she had completed every question.

When the bell signaled that the lesson was over, she packed her bag and left with Willow and Xander in tow.

"I think...I think I did alright," Buffy told them in astonishment.

Xander snorted.

"Yeah, yeah, stop bragging," he retorted, looking harassed. He had clearly not experienced the same luck Buffy had.

They stopped by a row of lockers so Willow could deposit some of her books.

"Of course you did," she smiled at Buffy, tucking her red hair behind her ear. "You always do well on tests."

Buffy stared at her. Now, Willow was always very encouraging towards her, no matter how badly she did, but this was an outright lie.

"Um...what?"

The other two didn't stop to answer. Willow shut her locker and headed for the quad with Xander not far behind. Buffy had to run to catch up with them.

"Wanna grab some coffee from the cafeteria before next period?" Willow asked as they walked out into the sun.

"I think I'll pass," Buffy said, her eyes straying in the direction of the library. "I should let Giles know we bagged the Glargh-...the Glurl-...the demon." Why couldn't demons have reasonable names that were easy to pronounce?

Xander and Willow stared at her, then exchanged a look of concern.

"You doin' okay, Buff?" Xander asked cautiously, eyeing her as though she had just told them she was quitting school to join the circus. "You been drinkin'?"

Xander was known for his quirky humor, but if this was his attempt at a joke, Buffy didn't get it. She looked at them in confusion, and they returned said look with equal puzzlement.

"What are you- Oh, God!"

Buffy's gaze had strayed just long enough to catch sight of a dark-clad, tall and muscular man making his way towards them, his handsome looks making every girl's head turn. It was Angel. Angel was here! In bright daylight!

"NO!" Buffy cried, expecting to see the love of her life burst into flames at any second. She threw her bag aside and wrestled out of her jacket, pouncing on Angel in an attempt to push him into the shadows and shield him from the lethal sun. Instead of toppling over, he caught her, held her up with ease, his face a mix between amusement and surprise.

"Buffy, what are you doing?"

"You have to get out of the sun!" Buffy continued, struggling now to free herself from his surprisingly strong grasp. She had never had problems doing that before. Her strength had always overpowered his in the end. "You'll die!"

Everyone in the quad had gone quiet now, and they were all staring at the unexpected scene that unfolded before them. Angel looked quite worried now. He put Buffy down, but didn't release her, his hands grasping her small shoulders to hold her in place.

"Buffy, calm down. What are you talking about?"

The longer they remained like this, the more Buffy's panic faded, giving way to a new and terrifying confusion. Angel was here. He was standing in the sun. And he wasn't burning. In fact, there was not a mark on him. How could this be? Vampires + sunlight = a pile of ash. It had always been that way. Even with Angel. But now...

Buffy, suddenly humiliatingly aware that everyone was watching her, forced herself to calm and soon everyone returned to their own business. Willow and Xander remained a short distance away, though Buffy was certain they were still able to overhear their conversation.

"I just..." she began, gazing up into Angel's deep brown eyes, "I don't understand how this is possible. How can you be here?"

Angel cracked a smile, meaning his lips twitched just enough to not be a straight line, and slipped one hand into his pocket. He withdrew a pink mobile phone and held it up for her to see.

"You forgot this at my place last night. Just thought I'd return it. You always say you'd go crazy without it," he muttered. "Guess you weren't joking."

Buffy simply continued to stare at him, unable to produce words other than "What?" and "How?"

He shot her an affectionate look and cupped her chin with a gentle hand, thereby closing her mouth which was hanging open from shock.

"Maybe I've been wearing you out lately. I'll go easier on you next time," he smirked, leaning down to claim her lips in a short kiss that still had the power to make Buffy feel as though someone had released a swarm of butterflies inside her. "I gotta get to work. See you tonight?"

And with that, he strolled away, back the way he came and towards the school exit. Buffy clutched the stupid pink phone in her small hand, looking after him with a new sense of foreboding. Something was very wrong. Impossibly wrong. For when Angel had leaned in to kiss her, Buffy was certain she had felt his heart beat.


	2. Chapter 2

**It's A Wonderful Life**

 **-2-**

Buffy ran.

As fast as her legs would carry her. Navigating her way through the throng of students headed for class. Her body collided with a few of them, some fell over, others simply shouted after her in outrage as she flew by.

She had left Willow and Xander in the quad after telling them she would be skipping chemistry. That she needed to talk to Giles, slayer business, to which Willow had responded: "Slayer? The band?"

Buffy had no reply for that. It simply confirmed her suspicion that something incredibly strange was going on. She felt as though she was playing a game, and the only player who did not know the rules was her.

She burst through the doors to the library. They swung violently in her wake, almost crashing into the walls at their respective sides. Buffy had expected to find the room empty, nothing but musty old books and the English librarian who also served as her Watcher. It was a big surprise then, that every table seemed to be occupied, that there were students examining the shelves. Some had even lined up in a queue at the front desk - to check out books.

Buffy gaped, her world becoming even more confusion than it already was. What the hell was this? The only students to ever visit the library were Buffy, Xander and Willow, and on occasion Willow's boyfriend, Oz, and the School Queen, Cordelia. In fact, Buffy had witnessed Giles become agitated when others would attempt to make use of the selection of books. This room was "theirs". The Scoobies. Their private, little office where most of the demon research and battle plans were made.

A few of the people by the front desk looked up as she entered, Giles among them. He didn't greet her with his usual mild smile, but looked rather cross. Of course, this didn't necessarily mean he was angry. He was just British, and Buffy had given up on deciphering all of his ways. Perhaps he had yet to find the time to enjoy his cup of tea, or perhaps he had encountered Principal Snyder earlier that morning? That was enough to make anyone livid.

"Do you mind!" Giles hissed under his breath as he abandoned the stack of books he had been registering, and rounded the desk to close the distance between him and Buffy. "This is a library, and I demand silence."

Buffy blinked, taken aback by this cold behavior.

"Sorry, " she muttered, her breath still a little labored from running. "But this is urgent. I need to talk to you."

Giles didn't respond, but he raised one eyebrow as if to say he was listening.

"Something's wrong, Giles. Willow and Xander, they're acting weird, and...and Angel! He was just here! In broad daylight." She paused, her face somber, uncertain how she felt about the next part. "I felt his heart beat."

Giles watched her a moment, his face frozen in that mildly inquisitive manner he had assumed earlier. Then his eyes gleamed again, annoyed.

"It's Mr. Giles," he said, smoothing the front of his tweed suit.

"What?"

"Simply because I am not a teacher, does not mean I will tolerate disrespect. You will refer to me as Mr. Giles." Giles turned on his heel and headed back for his counter, appearing to completely ignore everything else Buffy had told him. "You are the elusive, miss Summers, yes? I believe I sent you a letter a few days ago, inquiring about the books you have yet to return. They are overdue!"

Buffy felt a lump rise in her throat, her head spinning. She had become so used to Giles' usual kind and warm nature, she had never expected him to react in such a way for simply wishing to talk to him. After her arrival in Sunnydale nearly three years ago, her Watcher had been the closest thing Buffy had to a father, especially since her real father, Hank Summers, had pulled away more and more after the divorce. Giles had always made time for Buffy. Always.

This Giles, this cold, scowling, dismissive old man was not HER Giles.

Feeling horribly rejected at a moment when she needed her Watcher the most, Buffy fought back the sting of tears and left without any further exchange of words. As the doors swung shut behind her, she could hear Giles calling: "Excuse me! Miss Summers! The books!"

She ignored him.

 **M** eeting up with Xander and Willow seemed pointless at this point. They hadn't even batted an eye when Angel showed up, as if they found his appearance at Sunnydale High during the day completely normal. Instead, Buffy retired to the girls' restroom for a while where it was quiet enough for her to get her thoughts straight.

She thought back on the days prior and her friends' behavior during those days. Everything had been perfectly normal. Well, "Sunnydale-normal". Willow, Xander and Giles had done research on a few new demons that had been spotted in town, and Buffy had finished them off accordingly. She had been with Angel, at his abandoned old mansion up in the hills. She had brought him bloodbags from the butcher shop. And he had been himself - vampire, living in the dark, touched her with such gentleness it was as though he was afraid he would not be able to control himself should he lower his guard just a little.

Their embrace in the quad had not been gentle. He had held her tightly, as close to his body as possible, with none of his usual reservations. And though, now she thought about it, the feeling that he was not afraid to touch her had been absolutely wonderful, what Buffy had always wanted, she knew it was not real. How could it be? How could such things change over night? Vampires could not become human...It had never been done.

"A spell..." Buffy mused aloud, her hands in her hair as she leaned back against the sink nearest the door. Could it be? She knew Willow had a bad track-record with these things. A witch in training, her spells often carried dangerous and unexpected consequences. But Buffy could not think a reason Willow would have to cast a spell during their brief time apart the previous night.

The restroom-door opened, and a tall, slender, stunningly beautiful brunette entered with her minions in tow. Cordelia Chase. She had never been fond of Buffy, but after Cordelia had found out Buffy's secret of being a slayer, the girls had started to tolerate each other. Mostly for the sake of Xander, who Cordelia had been dating a while, but also to help each other defeat whatever evil lurked in Sunnydale at the time. After the breakup, however, Cordelia had become more distant. She had pulled away from the group and rejoined her old cheerleader friends.

Therefore, Buffy was not surprised by the look Cordelia shot her as she noticed her.

"Oh," she said, eyeing the blonde with clear disapproval, "it's you." Sighing and tossing her glorious hair back behind her shoulders, she placed one hand on her shapely hip and reluctantly continued: "Against my better judgment, we've decided to make you first alternate. I mean, you're totally not cheerleading material, but I guess your audition didn't suck as much as I'd expected." She didn't look happy. Nor did her cronies.

Buffy met Cordelia's dark eyes in the mirror. What was that? Cheerleading? Buffy had given up on that her first year at Sunnydale, after a vengeful witch had cursed the squad, so that she could secure a place for herself.

"My audition?" Buffy mouthed, searching her brain for any such recollection. She came up empty.

Cordelia rolled her eyes and gave a scoff. "So weird," she muttered over her shoulder to the two girls following her like puppies, eventually taking her place in front of the mirror to reapply her lipstick.

Buffy took this as her cue to disappear, not at all eager to linger on the topic of cheerleading when she had so much more pressing matters to attend to. Just as she headed for the door, she heard the girl to Cordelia's left inquire: "So, who is replacing Jamie again? The new girl?"

"Yeah," Cordelia answered, smacking her lips together to even out the color. "Faith, something. Faith Lehane."


End file.
